This Is War
by xxsezaxx
Summary: In a world of war between good and evil, I Rosemarie Hathaway vow to battle, vow to fight until I no longer breathe. This is the year 2050 and this is the final showdown between Strigoi and the Vampire race. Are you ready? Vampire Academy set in the future where the stakes are even higher and the action even deadlier.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! I'm aware that i still have quite a few stories on the go but I literally dreamt about this story last night and i had to write it down. This is going to be new for me. A story set in the future and writing about war, it's going to be so much fun and i hope you will be with me every step of the way for this epic story!**

**Enjoy!  
**

In a world of war between good and evil, I Rosemarie Hathaway vow to battle, vow to fight until I no longer breathe. This is the year 2050 and this is the final showdown between Strigoi and the Vampire race. Are you ready?

Moroi fight alongside the dhampir's, Rose is fresh out of the academy and most students are recruited to join in the fight. Lissa is head of healers (A new spirit group) Dimitri is head of the war party. Vampire Academy set in the future where the stakes are even higher and the action even deadlier.

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These are dark times; a massive influx in Strigoi has created an all-out war with the vampire race. Everyone has come together for this final battle; the battle that will determine who wins. Some people have fled to other countries while others have come here to help fight the battle. The Strigoi have a fortress three times the size of St Vlads, they built the fortress under the cover of darkness for five years before we discovered it. By the time the guardians had discovered what they had done there was no way to infiltrate it. Strigoi had worked together with humans to build it, the vast technology of the 2050 era allowed them to have magnificent security. We've sent teams to try and get some intel but most of them never returned, the only clue of what exactly was in the fortress was the video footage that the men carried on them.

I graduated not long after the war had been declared and for a few months I carried out a mission with Lissa to find more Spirit wielders. With the mission being an utter success at finding an astounding thirty spirit wielders Lissa is now head of the Healers. The Healers are stationed throughout Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Oregon. The Strigoi have built their fortress in Nevada and there numbers are growing every single day.

The skies have grown dark and the landscape developed an eerie fog as if Mother Nature can feel the storm of war brewing and she's not happy. The world has grown dim and the line separating humans and the vampire world nearly non-existent. Alchemists are working harder than ever to try and hide our world from the humans, but they have grown unsuccessful as humans crave immortality and join Strigoi in the fight.

Right now I'm on a mission to find a rumored spirit wielder in the confines of the fortress. They deemed this mission suicidal, so naturally, I took it. This was no ordinary spirit wielder, it is rumored he has the knowledge to return Strigoi to normal. Even if it is just a rumor, it's a bit suspicious that Strigoi would keep this spirit wielder locked tight in their security. When war was declared so was a new tradition, a new tradition that could win this war. Moroi began training to fight, and they were deadly. We are no longer called Guardians, we are now Soldiers. We have bases spread out for supplies and places to stay between missions and stakeouts.

There are several groups being led by a once successful guardian, I was assigned to Dimitri Belikov's corp at his request. He had been my mentor and we had grown a relationship that was forbidden, with war on the horizon we promised each other that no matter what happened we would get back to each other. I occasionally help him out in missions but he knows I prefer to go out on my own; I always let him know I'm safe somehow.

The ability to control the elements mixed with our deadly training in the art of killing Strigoi it seemed the war was on our side. However technology was on the Strigoi's side, they had weapons and defense mechanisms that you wouldn't believe. Although so did we, Stakes were created into even deadlier weapons, stakes in spears, silver arrowheads created for those who were talented in archery. Silver bullets were forged for several guns and my personal favorite; Stakes shaped into silver nunchucks.

We became deadlier and Strigoi became smarter, least to say that this war is going to go down in history as a war of epic proportions, and I'm going to be at the front line waiting for these bastards to give it their all.

**Let me know what you think and i understand you will have some questions but they will all be answered in further chapters!**

**Please review!  
**

**xxSezaxx  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here is Chapter 2! Enjoy.**

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Chapter 2

The roar of my motorbike calms my soul as I speed down the only road in this godforsaken desert, only taking occasional breaks to check my map for the red X marking the spot of the fortress. I had no plan whatsoever to break in and get out with the spirit wielder alive. I had considered calling Lissa for help to make me a disguise. But she was far too busy healing people and teaching spirit rather than help some soldier gone rogue on suicidal missions.

As I approached closer to the location I turned off my motorbike and stashed it, kissing my baby goodbye and promising her that I'd return. Once it was safely stashed away I then started hoisting on my weapons, my bow and arrow, a gun and my nunchucks were the most important. I also had several other little gadgets hidden within my clothing. My friend Eddie turned out to be the weapons specialist that our world could hope for, the old age of stakes was no longer enforced. Of course some people still prefer that method as it is 'tradition' and refused to believe that these are new and dangerous times. Smart people on the other hand grew accustomed to Eddie's ingenious weapon designs and some even excelled in it.

It is now in the curriculum to study with a weapon of your choice, we have masters in the art of each weapon and if you are talented enough you may become their understudy. These new developments however were after I graduated and so I taught myself how to use my personal weapons. I was excellent with my bow and arrow as my small frame and strong arms perfected the balance required to send a silver arrow into a strigoi's cold, dead heart. In the last base that I had passed through I acquired an owl to send a message. I always questioned our method of messaging and I spoke my question aloud one day. The response I received was that Strigoi were able to intercept our mechanical devices which had led to a massacre attack on an unsuspecting base.

Since then we've used owls to deliver our messages to separate bases. In the letter, I wrote to Dimitri hoping for some reinforcements waiting outside the fortress for when I get the Spirit Wielder out. I hadn't told him what mission I was on and I knew that telling him in a letter was cowardice. But I knew in his rage he would still come through for me and send some men. The closest base was a good day from here, so I had 24hrs to get in and get out before they came and perhaps ran in here and ruined everything for my rescue.

I took a deep breath and made sure my small camera hidden in my clothing was on, nobody had successfully gotten footage of this place and if I was going in there I sure as hell would.

The walk there is excruciating as the nerves in my body jolt at every sound that my dhampir senses pick up. I scold myself for being such a coward and move faster, unfortunately moving faster meant me tripping over a damn log. As I look up from my position on the ground nothing in the world could have prepared me for what I saw.

The landscape was utterly dead, every piece of life or plants you could imagine were burnt to nothing but black ash. The glow of the sunset cast an ominous red across the landscape making it look like blood and ash. I was horrified. Past the charred landscape you can see what appears to be the fortress. A giant wall surrounds it and what appear to be black specks patrolling the front. I take out binoculars and discover to my shock that it is humans guarding the front gate. Why on Earth would they have humans guarding their fortress? Leaving their safety in the hands of humans hardly seems logical. We had no reports of this either, maybe I was wrong and they were in fact Strigoi disguised as humans?

But then again I don't see why they would go to such lengths when no sane dhampir on this Earth would have taken this mission and dare go into the fortress.

I double checked my weapons again and set off through the landscape, having made sure my camera had a good view on what I was witnessing. My combat boots crunched against the blackened earth, the wind howled as if mother earth was weeping for her destroyed land that I was walking on. I can now understand their strategy, with barren landscape there was no way an enemy can approach from the trees in a surprise attack. I would be sticking out like a sore thumb and if I didn't find a way to disguise myself then I could be dead before I can even utter a curse word.

I search my surroundings and find a patch of land that is wet from rain and has turned the earth to mud, it's perfect.

I smother every crevice of skin with mud and rub black coal all over myself; my hair is covered in mud. Thankfully I had stuck with a camouflage uniform that we were insisted on wearing. When I approached closer I got down on the ground and army crawled, I got out my binoculars and tried to find a blind spot on the wall. _There._

On the left side of me there was no one patrolling and I took my chance.

I took out a little metal device attached to my belt and clicked the button, a steel rope with a grapple hook at the end of it shot out immediately.

It hooked onto whatever was on the other side of the wall and I clicked another button, the rope began pulling me up and I used the wall for leverage to get me there quicker.

I pulled myself up over the bricks and I hunched down onto the little bridge atop the wall. It was bare, I expected an attack. I braced myself as I searched my surroundings. I risked a peek over the edge.

_Holy mother of Satan._

This is what hell looks like, I decided.

The buildings inside were also brick but what shocked me the most was the scent of death and the sight of rotten bodies everywhere. It seemed that although the Strigoi could work together it didn't mean they didn't have quarrels with each other. Some of the bodies also seemed human, as if their service was no longer required.

It was a death fortress.

I took a couple of deep breaths and got ready for action. Upon further investigation I realise that it's bigger than I thought. It was a city consisting of brick structures and people in metal gear with loaded weapons. The stench of burning bodies filled my nostrils and I gagged. The rumours were true after all…they had an army and they were growing.

I heard voices approaching in my direction so I crouched down and prepared for an attack.

To my surprise it was a woman around my age and height. A sudden plan formed in my mind.

They approached closer to me and when they were within two feet I quickly stood up and snapped the guys' neck from behind. Killing humans is something that went against our moral code but when it comes to them willingly helping Strigoi, well we had no choice. His lifeless body dropped to the floor and the woman gasped in shock. I knew she was about to scream but before she could I snap her neck as well. I quickly pinched her uniform and threw it over my own; I took out a vial and tapped a couple of drops onto each of the bodies. They dissolved in a matter of seconds.

I had stolen these from Alchemists that had visited a town a while ago, you can buy them on the black market but…soldiers don't get paid. They get paid by still having their life.

Killing humans may make me seem like a cold-hearted killer whose heart is masked by what is good and evil. But it's a mistake that I have had to learn the hard way, to underestimate humans and think they are simply weak. If we had of known otherwise a fellow soldier would still be alive today, my partner in crime Mason Ashford.

Some humans had wondered into our camp injured, Mason automatically took it under his obligation to make sure they received medical attention. Only when he got closer Strigoi jumped out of nowhere and snapped his neck. Drained him dry and left him, the humans weren't even injured but tricked soldiers into thinking they were so the Strigoi could have their next meal.

It made me sick and angry to the core.

I had no more faith in humanity and just did what I needed to do to survive and get what I needed.

And what I needed was that Spirit Wielder. _And a bath._

I found a ladder to get down from the wall and attempted to appear normal and as if I belonged. My uniform had the name Anna I noticed. I walked past some men cooking over a stove and I cringed as one called out my name.

"_Anna? Aren't you meant to be patrolling the wall with Dean?"_

"_Oh, I was reassigned to tend to the spirit wielders needs." I bluffed as I kept my face hidden underneath my hat._

"_Babysitting again? He seems to trust you so it makes sense the commander makes you babysit him."_

I nodded and said goodbye.

Now if only I knew where he was, it appeared that luck was on my side however. As an earpiece attached to the uniform buzzed to life.

"_Anna, I need you down in the south dungeons. Spirit guy is having another of his attacks and we need you down here to calm him." _

"_Roger that." _I replied back.

Roger that? God damn I was going to get myself killed in here.

I took a major gamble on where these dungeons were and just kept heading down flights of stairs and going South in hope I will have some luck.

As it grew darker and the air became warmer and denser I realised I must be at the dungeons. A huge door greeted me and I knew I had reached my destination.

A little flap slid to the side and a man peeked through it, he was only tall enough to see my uniform with my name tag and I was granted access. What I was trying to figure out was why they had such medieval methods; the rumours were that their expanse knowledge in advanced technology had allowed them to have amazing security. I was perplexed as I had not yet seen this 'advanced technology and amazing security mechanisms.'

So far I was able to kill two of their soldiers, steal their uniform and acquire the whereabouts on the spirit wielder in less than three hours.

Yet my gut was screaming to be cautious, this could all be such a cover and their robot soldiers could come out any second and disintegrate me with their laser guns. I was let inside and I could hear agonising screams and ramblings. As I walked down the corridor I passed more cells and in each one were men. Dozens of dirty men, upon closer inspection I notice the grime of a familiar uniform. My camouflage uniform and I nearly screamed in shock. These were the men that had been sent in but had never made it out. They had been kept prisoner all this time.

Now it seemed I had another mission on my hands, one more impossible than the last, and it would mean I would have to come back again.

I rushed toward the sounds and found a man coated in sweat thrashing against metal chains.

Two men were standing at the front of his bars and were shaking their heads.

"Ah there you are he's having another one of his episodes. We'll need you to calm him down so we can get more answers out of him."

They walked by me without as much as a glance.

Once they had left the corridor and out the door I rushed to the bars and attempted to get a closer look.

The dim lighting hadn't allowed me to see much but my dhampir senses kicked in and I saw quite a young Moroi man. He was definitely our guy, I noticed the mad ramblings of a spirit wielder who held no healing charms to keep the spirit demons at bay.

I pulled out a little laser appliance that I knew would eat through these bars, I got rid of some that allowed a man hole.

The next mission was getting him out of his trance and making sure he was physically capable of getting the hell out of here.

I crawled through the space I had made and grabbed yet another vial out of one of my pockets, this one contained dhampir blood.

I pulled off the top and held open his mouth, I poured the liquid into his mouth and he seemed to snap out of it almost immediately.

He spoke "Please, please no more. I can't handle anymore."

"It's okay, I'm here to rescue you. It's okay."

He whimpered.

"Please, I can't help you anymore. They will come for me; I can't keep my sanity for much longer."

He only recognised my uniform and couldn't understand that I wasn't the enemy.

I turned around and showed him my Zvezda mark on my neck and he gasped.

"You've come for me. Thank you. Oh god" He began to sob and I slapped him across the cheek.

He looked at me in surprise and I told him that this was no time to break down and that we had to leave.

I examined his chains and pulled out my trusty laser and I cut through them. He landed on the ground and rubbed his sore limbs.

"Are you too weak to stand? To walk and run?" I asked.

"The blood you gave me has given me some strength but I don't suppose you have more under their?"

I had one more vial but hoped that I wouldn't have to use it.

I gave it to him and he gulped it in one go.

He jumped to his feet and urged me forward.

"Have you got a plan?" He asked.

I had one but it all depended on whether he had any spirit left.

"I do, but it requires you using your spirit."

His brows furrowed together in anguish. "How much spirit are we talking here?"

"Only enough to disguise the both of us so we can get out of here unnoticed." I told him.

"Have you got anything silver on you?"

I nodded and pulled out two silver bracelets for him to charm.

He sat there for ten minutes charming them and I hoped to god that they would work.

"Okay, that should disguise us long enough to get out of here. So lead the way."

I braced myself; if we could get out of this alive I would have accomplished something that could potentially change our world.

"What is your name?" I asked him.

"It's Robert, and may I ask the name of my rescuer?"

"Rose, Rose Hathaway."

"Okay Rose, let's get out of here."

I put on the bracelet and advanced past the cells but it seems our chatting got some of their attention.

"Hey! She's rescuing the spirit wielder! What about us! Get us out of here too!"

One of the prisoners yelled. Oh no, they all joined in. They were making too much noise, I hadn't counted on them yelling and carrying on.

I grabbed Robert's hand and ran for the door all the while promising myself that I and a team would return for them.

Our first issue was the guard at the door; the memory of his red piercing eyes brought me to an obvious solution. I pulled out my bow from its holster and drew an arrowhead from its pack, the guard turned around and it took me all of a millisecond to aim for his heart and shoot the silver arrow.

He went down with a cry and we were out the door, once we were climbing the stairs we had to remain completely natural. Once the body was discovered all hell would break loose that there is an intruder in their midst.

We had to get out quickly but calmly.

Once out of the dungeons out next issue would be getting out of the wall or passed through the iron gates. A diversion had to be created.

I pulled Robert into a corner and crouched down, an alarm had been sounded.

That was a diversion we needed but it wasn't enough, the guards were still in their place at the gate. I pulled out something from my jacket that I didn't want to use, it was a grenade. But it was no normal grenade.

This was a grenade reinforced with silver spikes once it exploded. It was rare to come by and I only wanted to use it for emergencies.

However once we were spotted by a guard and our charms had worn off, and then it would be an emergency.

My prayers were answered as some guards were called away and an opening was there for us to get over the gate. Unfortunately my grapple hook can only hold a certain amount of weight, I made a decision quickly.

"Here, take this. Press that button and it will pull you up over the gate. Once you get over it there is a bit of a drop but the hook works both ways, shoot it into the ground and use the rope to slide down. Once you're on the ground run, run like the wind. Keep going north and you'll find a motorbike and within the next 18 hours men should be arriving there. If I'm not back by the time they arrive, leave without me. Don't come back for me." I gave him these quick instructions hoping he wouldn't argue with me.

"What about you?" He asked.

"Me? I'm going to blow these bastards to hell." I said giving him my best smirk of all time.

"Now go! Remember my instructions!" I pushed the device into his hands.

I watched him from a distance as he climbed over the fence; I heard a thud as his feet touched the earth on the other side and the sound of running. I breathed a sigh of relief.

Now it was time for some fun.

**Hope you liked it!**

**Don't forget to review!  
**

**xxSezaxx  
**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

People ran frantic searching for the intruder, if I wanted to kill these bastards and get out of here alive I had to do it quick. But before I could make my move someone spotted me, he braced himself for a scream. I couldn't let him giveaway my position. I took a little knife from my sheath and threw it towards his neck, he gagged and chocked before he could even utter a sound.

But even that attracted attention, I saw the opening I needed to get out of the gates. I decided to use myself as bait. My heart was pounding and the adrenaline coursing through my veins was giving me crazy Rose Hathaway ideas. I made sure my video cam was operating and walked calmly as ever to the front of the gate.

I turned towards Strigoi soldiers that were searching the area and wolf whistled.

That got their attention.

"Hey! Are you looking for someone!?" I screamed.

Everyone's attention was on me and as I stared at every single red eye staring at me there was no time to really think about what I was doing. It was all in slow motion, several people running towards me in battle cry and me screaming at them back.

"THIS IS FOR MASON!" I yelled as I pulled the pin on the grenade and threw it into the crowd of Strigoi that were running towards me thirsting for my blood.

The blast knocked me down and I rolled into the gate wall, I felt a stinging sensation in my abdomen but had no time to search for injuries. Everything was happening so slowly, I heard cries of pain and I shook my head to get my hearing back. There was now no one guarding the gate and I slapped the button to get the damn thing open while I was hoping most of them would be too injured or dead to come after me.

The gate opened painfully slow and once a small gap was made I rolled under it and ran like the wind. Each footstep was agonizing and my brain was still catching up with my body, I ran through mud and it splashed in my face.

I ran for what seemed like ages and once I was sure I had put a lot of distance between me and the death camp I leaned against a tree and checked my injuries.

It turns out I really should have listened to the instructions and safety manual that Eddie had given me along with that grenade. I should have been a lot further away when I threw it; some razor sharp spikes were protruding out of my stomach and two more in my right leg. I could feel little bits of it in my face and hands. Luckily the wounds seemed superficial and it didn't seem as though it hit any major organs, but I couldn't risk pulling them out.

I tried to gather my bearings and remembered where I had hidden my motorbike, I hoped Robert had got their safely and found it.

An hour later I found it in the bushes where I had left it, but no Robert.

Great, that was just fucking great! I bet he couldn't figure out directions I thought.

I picked up my motorbike and flinched when I felt the spikes dig in, it really hurt and I had to get to a base as soon as possible before they get infected.

I tried to start the bike but pain shot up my right leg, _fuck._

I heard the bushes rustle and I pulled out my bow and arrow towards the potential threat, it turned out to be Robert.

I breathed a sigh of relief.

"I thought I was going to have to send a search party for you." I said

"Sorry, your directions were pretty crappy." He replied.

I huffed in annoyance.

"Can you by any chance ride a motorbike?"

He gave me a bewildered look and I took that as a no.

"Well, we better camp out and wait for Belikov's team." I said to him preparing to get as comfortable as I could.

"What happened to your face? How did you get out of there?" He asked in a rush.

"I blew them up with a steel-spike-shooting grenade and being the genius I am I wasn't far enough to avoid the spikes." I said flinching as I sat down and lifted my shirt to exam the spikes.

Blood poured out of the sides and it looked nasty, I felt woozy.

"I can't heal you, I'm sorry but I've already used so much spirit." Robert said sitting down beside me up against a tree.

"it's fine, Belikov's men will be here in the next 12 hours and they usually have a healer or a medic accompanying them. Especially when I've gone on a mission requesting for back-up."

The sky was dark and I couldn't see anything in front of me, the night air had grown cold but it was too risky to build a fire. Hell, it was too risky to even be this close to the death fortress, I just blew a bunch of them to hell and I'm _this close._

I realized how stupid we were and attempted to stand up, we had to get further away and find refuge otherwise we may not make the night.

"Come on; help me pick up this motorbike." I said to Robert.

"Right, I'll just walk with it there is no way you can do it." He said picking it up onto its two wheels and grabbing the handles.

I snapped a nearby branch and checked its flexibility; it was strong enough for me to lean on when I walked taking pressure of my leg.

We walked along the road that I had come from for an hour or so before I couldn't put another foot in front of the other any longer. I collapsed onto all fours and took a few breaths; I didn't want to look weak in front of the Spirit Wielder.

He bent down and offered me his hand and I waved it off.  
"its fine, I just need to rest." I told him.

He nodded and helped me to the side of the road and sat down beside me.

I must've fallen asleep because the next thing I know I hear the familiar roar of motorbikes in the distance.

I try to sit up but feel a hand push me back.

"No, don't move. You'll risk pushing them further in and puncturing something important. You've lost a lot of blood."

I felt really dizzy and tried to sit up.

No way would I let people see me this way, especially when I was the idiot that stood to close to a grenade that shot out god damn steel spikes.

The motorbikes got closer and I tried pushing myself up but just kept getting stopped by Robert.

I leant against the motorbike and he gave up muttering something about being stubborn and a crazy rogue Dhampir.

"Hey! This crazy rogue Dhampir saved your ass! Don't forget that!" I yelled at him.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry. I'll be right back I'll just wave these guys down."

By this time the motorbikes were close and stopped nearby as Robert waved them down and explained who he was and who he was with.

"You're the spirit wielder?" A familiar voice asked.

Oh no. Oh he was going to be pissed. I would know that Russian voice anywhere.

When I asked for back-up I meant his men not him directly, oh shit.

"Where is Rose?" He asked.

Robert must have pointed to me because I didn't hear a response.

"She needs a medic, crazy woman saved my ass and killed as many as she could –"He didn't get to finish his sentence as Dimitri ran in my direction.

"Rose?" He knelt beside me and pulled up my shirt.

"_Shit, _what the hell did you do?" He asked with a growl and deep concern.

"Remember that special grenade I was telling you about? Well it came in handy." I said smirking.

He shook his head and called over the medic that usually accompanied him and his men.

He knelt down beside me and examined the spikes in my stomach and leg, he tsked in annoyance.

"I can't safely remove these without a sterile environment, we're going to have to take her back to camp." The medic said.

"Is she safe to move? The trip is at least a day." Dimitri replied.

"It won't be the best idea but it's her best hope." He said.

"Can you please stop talking about me like I'm not here? Just take me back to camp I'll be fine." I said.

"Roza-"

"No, Dimitri I got myself in this mess I can sure as hell make it a day back to camp. We need to get Robert somewhere safe and being out here in the open is not safe." I told him giving him my best logic.

He nodded and bent down to pick me up; I grimaced as my skin tugged on the spikes and held back a tear.

I would not let anyone see me like this, there was no way.

His men tore off on their bikes back in the direction they came and I winced as I was tucked behind Dimitri on his motorbike.

Robert was placed behind a man and I asked someone to ride my motorbike home.

It was my baby after all.

The trip was agonizing and the majority of the trip and breaks we took I was either fighting to stay conscious or just simply unconscious.

Dimitri would tap me awake sometimes and give me water, but right after that I would simply fall unconscious again.

The next time I am conscious I feel the sensation of being carried, I recognize the sight of 420 camp base. This was a camp specific for stocking up on items and getting medical attention if required, it had the best medical facility.

I was put on a table and all I see around me is white, a mask is put over me and I instantly fall into a deep sleep.

D.P.O.V

When I received the owl from Rose I almost chocked on my dinner.

_She's taken the Spirit Wielder mission? Needs immediate backup? Heading into the fortress alone?_

Oh god this woman will be the death of me.

I shot out of my chair and immediately called on my men telling them to get their things and hop on the bikes.

They didn't ask questions and I raced my way to the coordinates Rose had given me.

During the ride all the worst possible scenarios went through my brain, each one ending in finding Rose's dead body.

After an agonizingly long time I saw a man in the distance and signaled to my men to slow down, I immediately recognized Rose's bike and a limp figure.

The man waved us down and introduced himself as Robert Doru, Rose had actually managed to save the Spirit Wielder.

Pride welled up within me and I asked him where she was, he pointed in the direction of her bike and I saw her.

My heart did a leap.

I rushed to her side and checked her shirt, what appeared to be spikes were lodged in her abdomen.

"_Shit, _what the hell did you do?"

"Remember that special grenade I was telling you about? Well it came in handy." She said giving me that damned smirk of hers.

I did remember that grenade and I remember specifically warning her about using it and reading the warning labels that came with it.

I called over the medic to examine her.

"I can't safely remove these without a sterile environment; we're going to have to take her back to camp." The medic said.

"Is she safe to move? The trip is at least a day." I replied.

"It won't be the best idea but it's her best hope." He said.

The trip was going to take too long, but I knew she was a fighter.

The next 24 hours we agonizing as I tried to wake Rose up every now and then to give her water, I was immensely relieved when we got to the camp.

I picked up an unconscious Rose from the bike and took her immediately to the clinic and placed her on one of the tables.

She was rushed to surgery and all I could do was wait.


	4. Chapter 4

**Previously on: This Is War**

**She was rushed to surgery and all I could do was wait.**

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Chapter 4

I wake up blinded from the light overhead and I groan in annoyance. I take in my surroundings and recognize the sterile environment as the medical ward.

I go over the events of what has to be the past two days in my head and can't help but smile at the success of the mission. I may have gotten injured in the process and humiliated myself but at least I'd completed the 'suicide mission' no one dared to take on.

I most certainly had not forgotten about the soldiers that I had left behind, some may have even escaped in the chaos.

In fact, it should have been the first thing I told Dimitri.

I was restless for the next hour or so, I'd impatiently asked a nurse to fetch General Belikov for me but she informed me that he was in an important meeting regarding the Spirit Wielder. My frustration levels peaked as I should be in that meeting. I'm the one that risked my ass to save him for gods sake! He's my responsibility. Or that's how I felt…

Eventually I gave up and waited for the nurse to stop checking my vitals. Once she'd left I swung my legs over the edge of the bed, grunting as I felt stitches tug on my wound.

Unfortunately the nurse was adamant on constantly checking up on me and she scolded me for trying to get out of bed.

That's when I lost my patience.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME! ALL I WANT IS TO SEE GUARDIAN BELIKOV AND FIND OUT WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON. I'M THE ONE THAT RISKED MY ASS TO GET HIM HERE AND I WANT TO KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON!"

I was perhaps being overdramatic but I was pissed off.

"Miss, he's busy. I'm sorry you'll have to wait." She says while writing something on her annoying chat.

"Fuck that, either you bring him here now or I'm going to fucking crawl there and ruin the doctors pretty stitches, you got that?" I said with as much restraint as I could muster.

"I'm sorry, I've been told not to disturb him unless it's important." The nurse responds calmly.

"THIS IS GOD DAMN IMPORTANT!" I said thrashing around, I didn't like being held against my will even though technically I needed to be here.

The nurse nodded and left my room and I sighed in relief. She finally got it through her head this was an emergency. Only when she returned it wasn't with my tall sexy Russian, instead she brought a syringe full of clear liquid.

"I'm sorry miss but a sedative has been requested by the doctor to keep you calm, lay back and it should take affect soon." She said again robotically.

No way was she giving me a sedative.

'YOU AREN'T PUTTING THAT ANYWHERE FUCKING NEAR ME, IS THIS HOW SOLDIERS GET TREATED AROUND HERE?" At this point I was livid, not giving a single thought about my stitches I swung my legs over the bed and prepared to stand, only a voice stopped me.

"You can't even go five minutes before screaming the place down can you?" Dimitri said shaking his head with a smirk.

I took in his appearance and was overwhelmed by how handsome he looked in his uniform, he was always handsome and spending so much time away from him made my heart ache.

"Maybe if someone would've just bloody brought you then I wouldn't have. What's this about a meeting with Robert, shouldn't I be hearing this?"

"Rose, you just came out of major surgery in which they had to remove 6 very large pieces of metal out of your body and you want to know about a meeting?" He said while doing the stupid eyebrow raising thing.

He nodded at the nurse to give us some privacy and she left, shaking her head as she went. I flipped her off behind her back.

"Yes Dimitri, I need to know I didn't risk my ass just to get an uncooperative spirit user that might not even want to help us after all he's been through. Not only that but I have something important to tell you, a mission that needs to be attended to as soon possible." I said in one very quick succession.

"There has been no problem with Robert, he has been exceptional and has given us all the possible information that we needed. Your success in this mission won't be forgotten and I'm sure the authorities will consider a promotion. However your continuous reckless and rogue behaviour has put you in a dangerous position. You killed a lot of civilians in that fortress and that mass amount of numbers won't go unnoticed. They feel as though they can't trust you if you keep going off on your own." He said to me while taking up a chair.

His face was stony, not showing much emotion. I figured it must be serious if he is speaking to me this way, he was angry at me.

"You're angry at me." I stated calmly.

"I'm more than angry, I'm livid. I didn't train you to be so stupid, to take on such reckless missions by yourself. When I received your request for back up I almost had a heart attack, I may not always be able to save you Rose and I fear for that day." His face had grown grim as he went on and my heart ached with guilt.

I'd truly believed the mission was my calling, that Robert needed to be saved and I was the only one willing to do it. My thirst for vengeance on Mason's death had blinded me and I had gone in recklessly.

I bowed my head in shame, only Dimitri could bring this out on me. But I truly did feel bad for what I'd put him through.

He stood up paced and tried to rub out the frustration lines on his chiselled perfect face.

I pated the spot beside me on the bed and he grudgingly sat beside me.

I grabbed his hand and took a breath.

"Dimitri, I'm sorry. Ever since Mason's death I've…I don't know I guess I've lost my way. I've been hell bent on taking on these crazy missions, to you know… make something of his death. Make sure it wasn't a waste. I don't mean to make you worry, I just…it's built in me to do this. I can't be in a team when I know that I'll lose some of them…I couldn't handle a death like Mason's again. I wouldn't be able to come back from it. I'm truly sorry and thank you for saving me, but there is something important I need to tell you."

He nodded to continue, my words had softened his stony expression and he'd squeezed my hand when I spoke about Mason.

"You're not out of the woods yet Rose, the authorities have requested an official meeting with you and I've been told to escort you-"

I nodded but continued to tell him about the soldiers.

"When I was saving Robert they had soldiers in the dungeons, our soldier's Dimitri, the men that we'd sent in a while ago. They need to be saved. We need to put together a rescue mission." I said in a rush.

"Robert already informed me of the men and what you'd promised to do, however the mission needs to be approved first and that may not happen. Since you've infiltrated the base they know what we're capable of. They'd have no doubt increased their security, they'll know we're coming for them."

I sighed in frustration and winced as slight sensation starting coming back to my abdomen.

"Do you need the nurse? You look like you're in pain." Dimitri said with a worried expression.

"We have more we need to discuss, but it can wait. Robert's settled in and the mission is being discussed. You've done the mission Roza, just rest for a little bit." He said smiling.

He started to leave but I grabbed his arm – "Wait."

"I haven't seen you in a month and I don't even get a kiss?" I said with a flirty wink.

"Oh believe me, I want to do nothing more than kiss you like I never have before but I'm still mad at you and I don't want to hurt your stitches." He said.

"Dimitri, my stitches aren't on my face. So bloody kiss me already."

There was hesitation on his face but he crossed the distance in one step and pulled me into the most passion filled loving kiss that I'd ever experienced.

I'd missed this man more than I realised and I wanted nothing more than to take him to a private room and enjoy our love making that we'd missed out on due to missions recently. My body yearned for him but I had to wait until I'd healed. You'd expect with all this new age technology that they'd just heal me straight away, but being a dhampir I should heal up nicely in the next few days.

I pouted when he pulled away and he chuckled.

"I'll see you later Roza, get some rest and I'll fetch you when it's time for the meeting." I nodded and closed my eyes.

The ordeal had made me tired and the nurse had finally injected me with painkillers and I was out like a light.

* * *

I woke up the next morning feeling quite refreshed and feeling good. My body had gotten the rest it needed.

I was joined shortly by none other than our famous spirit wielder.

"Good to see my rescuer is awake." He said sitting down in the unoccupied chair.

"Good to see you're still alive." I said back to him and he grunted.

"So tell me, I've been going crazy in here and Dimitri wasn't specific on how you're doing." I sat up in a more appropriate position and was happy to realize the pain was at a dull ache.

"The hospitality here has been very good, I've been able to relay all the information I can. However, freedom is what I crave, to see my brother again. But they insist I stay and help us carry out what they want. I asked what was in it for me, and they simply said; "What is more rewarding than this war won?"

I contemplated what he said and I almost laughed at their ignorance. Being able to return strigoi to human form may benefit us but there is still the question of how and where. It seems Robert must be valuable if he has this information resulting in the council not willing to let him go so easily. I wonder if he is technically a P.O.W to us now instead of the strigoi, are we any better than them?

Keeping a man from his freedom because he holds valuable information.

I felt sorry for him, I did.

I gripped his arm and tried to put as much sympathy into my expression as I could.

"I am grateful of course to you though, for saving me from that place. For even though my freedom seems to still be eluding me I am at least in ally's hands. No longer a P.O.W in danger I can finally do something. I'm sure what I can do will spark a whole new campaign altogether, I'm sure I'm not allowed to speak of this but I requested to stay in your capable hands. They looked at me like I was crazy, but there's something about you Rosemarie Hathaway. Something that could change this war and stop it. For no one wins when it comes to war."

I'd recognized the crazy spirit glint in his eyes, his voice changing to a monotone eeriness that I'd heard in spirit darkness victims. I nudged him and he'd returned, we both sat there in silence and I tossed his words around in my head.

In war there are no winners, only survivors.


End file.
